An elderly couple were “terrorised” by council enforcement officers and each fined £80 - for dropping cherry pips .

Peter Marsh, 69, and his 65-year-old wife Gillian Green fell foul of littering laws while enjoying a day out.

The pensioners left their pips under a park bench in Canterbury, Kent, after buying the cherries from a nearby market stall.

They eventually set off to nearby shops and were approached by two council enforcement officers.

Peter and Gillian accused them of “behaving more like nightclub bouncers than enforcement officers”.

The council officials accused the couple of littering and handed them both £80 fixed penalty notices.

Peter, from Deal, Kent, said: “We were sitting under the tree with the circular bench after buying cherries from a market stall. We ate no more than 15 between us and put the stones at the base of the tree.

Cherry-picking: Couple believe they were targeted (Image: SWNS)

“When we left to continue shopping, we were approached by two men who were quite intimidating. We thought they were policemen.

"They separated my wife and I and were very forthright in demanding identification.

“I believe we were deliberately targeted as an older age couple who wouldn’t make a fuss.

“Issuing a penalty of £160 for biodegradable cherry pips is overzealous. Surely a verbal warning would have been more appropriate.

"The way it was carried out was just disgusting.”

The couple paid their fines but after Peter complained they were finally told £40 each would be refunded.

A Canterbury City Council spokesman defended the decision to give the couple fixed penalty notices.

He said: “Litter in the city centre is a priority issue for the public. We seek to enforce fairly no matter the age or gender of the person.

“We consider that everything discarded improperly on the street is litter. We cannot differentiate between an item being large or small, cigarette end or food packaging, a half-melon or cherry leftovers.

“In this case, there was a bin within a reasonable distance for them to use.

"We are satisfied that the fixed penalty notices were issued correctly and that the officers’ approach was fair and reasonable.”